I glance at the boxes of food that I haven’t touched yet and shrug. “This is fine.”
“If it’s fine, why haven’t you eaten it yet?”
Because I’ve been distracted,I think, swallowing again. “I’m a little overwhelmed,” I say instead.
His expression softens as he sits on the ground next to me. “That’s understandable. But you’re safe now. All of you,” he says, looking at the others. “I realize that’s probably hard to believe, and it’s going to take some time to trust us. That’s fine. We understand.”
He holds out something blue for me.
“I wasn’t sure of your size, so I found a dress,” he explains after I take the fabric from his hands. “Why don’t you put that on while I investigate the boxes?”
My fingers run across the texture, my senses suddenly hyperaware of the sensation.
I’ve never felt anything this soft before. It’s so silky and smooth. Everything I wore back home was scratchy or too warm. This feels…heavenly.
Dropping the blanket, I work on spreading out the dress to determine the front from the back.
It has sleeves, I marvel.And it’s long.
So unique.
It’s different from what the other Omegas are wearing, too.
Hel has on dark pants and a long-sleeved V-neck shirt with a leather waist cincher. Guðrún’s in jeans and a tank top, similar to Paige and Wendy.
And I have this pretty dress, I think, lifting it up to pull over my head. It resembles a waterfall against my skin, sliding downward into place and hugging my svelte form. I go to my knees and do a little shimmy to push it over my hips, then watch it glide over my thighs.
I love it,I decide, placing the blanket beneath me so I don’t have to sit on the ground in this beautiful gown. “Thank you,” I say, finally looking at Enrique again.
He’s staring at me with a look that makes me wonder if he’s as starved for food as I am. Because he looks ready to eat me.
The other Omegas have backed away a little, giving us some space. I’m not quite sure why. But I don’t mind. Enrique doesn’t scare me.
“You’re welcome.” He clears his throat. “Right, um, food.” He rips his gaze away from me and starts shuffling around the boxes.
I don’t really pay attention to what he hands me, instead choosing to accept whatever he deigns to give me. However, when he places a water bottle in front of me, I immediately grab it and chug half the contents without bothering to breathe.
It’s dangerous.
I have no idea when I’ll be gifted with more to drink, but I feel like I haven’t had any water indays.
Closing my eyes, I savor the hydration and give in to my need to drink more. By the time I finish, the bottle is empty and I nearly whine in protest.
Except two more containers of water have magically appeared before me.
I tentatively reach for one, almost expecting it to be a trick.
When it’s not, I accept the small miracle and drink my fill. This time, I have about a fourth left when I’m finally done, and I release a relieved sigh.
Starvation and dehydration are not new concepts for me. Actually, I’ve learned to live with them. But sometimes being given water is almost worse because I get to a point where I don’t feel much at all, then the drink reminds me just how thirsty I really am.
It’s a horrible consequence of giving in to my needs.
Fortunately, Enrique hasn’t taken the other bottle away.
Actually… I frown down at the blanket around me.There’s three more bottles. I gape up at him. “Are these all for me?” I ask him.
He shrugs. “I can get more if you need them. But you need to eat, too.” He gestures to the items I dropped in favor of the water. I don’t even remember doing that. “There’s fruit and?—”
